Corner Kicks

Offsides

Young Titans Kick Off Regular Season vs. Memphis

FULLERTON, Calif.-- The Cal State Fullerton men's soccer team kicks off the 2013 season this weekend at the Ryan Rossi Memorial Tournament in Northridge, Calif. The Titans' first match will be vs. Memphis, Friday at 5:30 p.m. while their second contest will come against Albany, Sunday at 2:00 p.m.

There will be live audio streaming available for both of Cal State Fullerton's games this weekend. To access audio for the matches visit www.fullertontitans.com, click the men's soccer schedule page then click the "audio" link.

There will be live stats available for both of Cal State Fullerton's soccer matches this weekend. To access live stats for the game visit www.fullertontitans.com, click the men's soccer schedule page then click the "live stats" link.

Series Notes: The two schools have only met twice all-time, with the first meeting coming in 2006, which also was Bob Ammann's first year at the helm...both matches these two teams have played vs. each other have been shutouts, with Fullerton outscoring Memphis 2-1 all-time...the largest win in the brief all-time series came last time these two schools hooked up in 2007, as Fullerton won 2-0.

Talking About the Tigers

Memphis enters the 2013 campaign full of promise, returning eight starters and 17 letterwinners off a 2012 club that finished 8-7-3 overall and placed fourth in Conference USA (4-4-2). The Tigers are one of 10 schools that make up the newly formed American Athletic Conference....Senior forward Mark Sherrod and senior midfielder Liam Collins are expected to be big contributors for Memphis, as both earned spots on Top Drawer Soccer's Men's National Top 100 Preseason rankings list...Sherrod currently ranks fifth in Memphis history in goals (35) and sixth in points (80). He's also been picked as the American Athletic Conference's best player by Top Drawer Soccer...While the Tigers aren't ranked by Top Drawer or the NSCAA preseason polls, Memphis was placed at No. 23 in BennettRank's preseason Top-25 poll...Memphis has been picked to finish sixth in the AAC according to the conference's preseason coaches' poll.

Cal State Fullerton vs. Albany

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Longest Win Streak N/A

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Current Streak N/A

Record in Last 10 Meetings N/A

First Meeting

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Last Meeting

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Series Notes: Sunday's match will mark the first ever meeting between the two schools.

Analyzing Albany

Albany brings back an experienced bunch into 2013, as the Great Danes welcome back nine starters and 13 letterwinner from a team that finished 6-11-1 overall and fifth (3-4) in the America East Conference a year ago...Sophomore midfielder Anthony Rozzano looks to build upon a solid freshman campaign, as he returns as the team's leading point getter from a year ago with eight. The Great Danes also bring back their leading goal scorer in 2012 in junior forward Brandon Wilson, who led the team with three goals...Albany has been picked to finish sixth in the conference according to the America East preseason poll.

Last Time Out For the Titans

In Cal State Fullerton's final test before it begins the regular season, the Titans were able to outlast the Titan Alumni squad by the final of 4-1 last Saturday afternoon at Titan Stadium.

"It's always good to see the old guys come back for this event," said head coach Bob Ammann. "Some of them have actually been training for a couple of days to get ready for this thing."

"But I think the most important thing was that no one was injured and everyone went home in one piece."

The Alumni squad looked sharp early, coming close to scoring on several occasions, as Nick Dodd (Titan alum from 2007-08) rifled one just over the crossbar in the 15th minute.

Jesse Escalante (Titan alum from 2009-12) had good look at one in the 23rd minute, but brother and former teammate Bryan Escalante dove to make a beautiful save in goal to keep things scoreless.

The current Titans eventually got their act together, as junior midfielder Colin Okirie netted one in the 30th minute after the nice assist by Ritchie Gonzalez to spot Fullerton a 1-0 advantage.

Just before halftime, midfielder Ian Ramos added one more for Fullerton, putting on a couple of moves before placing a ball in the right corner of the net to give the Titans a 2-0 lead.

The Titans would tack on one more in the 69th minute, as the younger Ramos brother decided to get in on the action, with Caide Ramos netting one off the assist by Sage Smith to extend the Titans' lead to 3-0.

Fullerton struck again just five minutes later, as Steven Ortiz scored off of the Dante Medina assist to make it a commanding 4-0 advantage.

However, the Alumni squad would eventually get on the board after Amir Shafii (2003-08) converted on a penalty kick in the 78th minute to make it 4-1 and deny the Titans a shutout.

Men's Soccer Ticket Information

Single-game tickets for regular season matches are priced $5-$8. Tickets for future games can be purchased at FullertonTitans.com, in-person at Cal State Fullerton's Athletic Ticket Office (M-F 10 a.m.- 4 p.m.) or over the phone at 657-278-7547. Game day ticket sales will also be available starting one hour before kickoff at the ticket windows outside Titan Stadium.

All Cal State Fullerton students are admitted FREE to regular season men's soccer home games. Each student must present a valid Titan Card at the main entrance to Titan Stadium for admission. All student sections are general admission. Admission is first-come, first-served and based on availability. Just show your Titan Card for admittance.

Winning in the Beginning

Cal State Fullerton is 23-10-5 all-time in season openers, including boasting a 4-1-2 mark in its last seven openers...The Titans are 4-2-0 all-time in neutral site season openers and have won their last three neutral site season openers.

Titans Tabbed Third in Big West Media Poll

Cal State Fullerton was selected to finished third in the Big West South Division according to the Big West preseason coaches' poll, which was released on Aug. 22nd by the league office, making the Titans favorites to earn a trip to the Big West Conference Tournament for a third time in four seasons.

Defending South Division champion Cal State Northridge garnered the respect of the league once again this year, as it was picked as the preseason favorite to win the South for a second straight year, collecting six first place votes and 30 points overall.

Orange County rival UC Irvine finished second in the South voting, earning 21 points overall (one first place vote), followed by the Titans (one first place vote) and UC Riverside, each accumulating 16 and 13 points respectively.

There was less of a clear favorite in the North Division with three teams being separated by four points or less in the polls.

UC Santa Barbara got the nod as the slight favorite to come out of the North Division, collecting five first place votes to go along with 25 points overall. 2012 North Division Champions UC Davis finished just behind the Gauchos with 23 points and three first place votes.

Traditional powerhouse Cal Poly also looks to contend this season, as it garnered 21 points to claim a third place spot in the poll, while Sacramento State was picked fourth with 11 points.

Straight From the Coach's Mouth

Be sure to visit www.fullertontitans.com and click on the men's soccer page to watch the 2013 men's soccer season preview video featuring head coach Bob Ammann.

Eyeing Ian (Ramos)

Junior Titan midfielder Ian Ramos was selected to the Big West's 11-man preseason all-conference squad. Ramos enters the season as one the most dynamic players in the league, as he led the Titans in points, goals, shots, and shots on goal during conference play a season ago.

Coming in Hot

BYU transfer midfielder Garrett Losee has made his presence felt early. During the his first two games as a Titan, he scored four of Fullerton's five preseason goals, including a hat trick on Aug. 22 vs. UNLV...the hat trick was tied for the most goals any Titan had scored since Ian Ramos netted three of his own in a 5-4 win over then No. 14 ranked Cal State Northridge last year on Oct. 17. While none of these statistics will actually count come kickoff Friday, Losee is definitely a player to watch for early on.

A Streak's a Streak

Again, not that any of this will matter come Friday, but the Titans strung together two consecutive wins to end the preseason. Fullerton only put together back-to-back wins on two separate occasions last season.

A Sign of Things to Come?

During exhibition play the Titans sported a 2-1 mark, averaging three goals per contest, while surrendering just two.

A Brand New Look

A new team, a new year, and yes new jerseys. After being outfitted by adidas for numerous years, both the men and women's soccer programs have switched to new Nike kits for the 2013 season.

The home jerseys sport blue and orange horizontal stripes across the top with blue "Fullerton" lettering across the chest, complete with blue shorts and blue socks on the bottom.

The away jerseys for the men feature a white top with an orange sash with navy blue trim extending from the left shoulder down to the right hip. Orange "Fullerton" lettering is printed across the chest, along with shorts and matching white socks.

In the Polls

The Titans, Tigers, and Great Danes all enter the 2013 season unranked by Top Drawer Soccer and the NSCAA

(A Lot of) New Kids on the Block

2013 truly represents a new era of Titan soccer, as the program welcomes in the largest class of new players in the Bob Ammann era, with 16 newcomers (11 freshman and five transfers).

New Experience?

While Fullerton holds one of the younger squads in the nation, that doesn't mean the Titans don't hold plenty of experience. Out of Fullerton's 11 newcomers, five of them are transfers in forward Marc Fenelus, midfielder Garrett Losee, midfielder Alex Cannas, forward Amara Soumah, and midfielder Erik Stephenson. Forwards Fenelus and Soumah were both named as NJCAA First Team All-Americans in 2012, while Fenelus also led Western Texas College to its first ever National Junior College National Championship appearance.

Hit Me With Your Best Shot

Cal State Fullerton boasts a rigorous eight-game non-conference schedule, which includes six games away from Titan Stadium. For the season the Titans will play four teams that are either ranked or received votes in the NSCAA's preseason top 25 poll. Fullerton will take on ranked opponents in back-to-back games on the road on Sept. 8 at No. 16 San Diego and Sept. 13 at No. 22 Cornell. Once the Titans enter Big West play, Fullerton will continue to take on top-tier competition, as it'll face Cal State Northridge twice and UC Santa Barbara once. Both schools received top 25 votes.

Road Trippin'

The Titans will play 11 of their 18 (61 percent) regular season games away from Titan Stadium this season, which is the most since Fullerton also spent 11 games away from home during the 2009 campaign. Six of Fullerton's eight non-conference games will be away from home, including six of the first seven contests to begin the year. The six non-conference games away from home are the most Fullerton has had since it played seven in 2008. The Aug. 30 regular season opener vs. Memphis will mark the first time the Titans have started a season on the road since 2010.

Roster Breakdown

The Titans currently have 29 players on the 2013 roster. 20 players are from the state of California, five are from outside of the United States, three are from Utah, and one is from Colorado.

Filling in the Holes

Cal State Fullerton returns just 26 percent (7) of the team's 27 goals scored last season, 55 percent (12/22) of all assists produced, and 46 percent of shots taken (139/299).

Better Chance to Dance

The Big West Tournament format has changed in 2013. Now instead of the top two teams from each division qualifying for the conference tournament, starting this year the top three teams from both the North and South divisions will advance to postseason play with each division's No. 1 seed receiving a first round bye, for a total of six teams in the field. The tournament schedule is as followed: